Regional Executive News

by Barbara McClellan

I just returned from the SCCA National Convention held in Las Vegas where I got to meet many members of this great organization to which we belong. There were over 480 members there representing all aspects of our club—Road Racing, Solo, Rally Cross. The National Staff members were there as well as all our governing leaders. I had the opportunity to meet our President and CEO, Mike Cobb, and was very impressed with his vision for the future of our organization which is to be the preferred motorsports community in the US, built on fun, shared passion and access to an exhilarating motorsports experience.

Our racing season starts in mid February with our Drivers School. A lot of planning has gone into that school. By the time you have the opportunity to read this column we will have already had a Chiefs Meeting, a Stewards Meeting and training for specialty crews.

Everyone needs to remember that it takes a lot of effort to make everything go smoothly—many volunteers put in many hours to make it happen. Your Board of Directors is made up of volunteers as well.

That being said—your Board is here for you. We want to hear how we can make your motorsports experience better and we’re always open to suggestions. Call us, email us, stop us at the track and let us know what we can do to keep our sport fun, fair and safe.

2017 Regional Champions from A to Z; Ross Bentley’s Speed Secrets; How to Qualify for the Runoffs; Decoding SCCA Road Racing Classes

Introducing the NEWEST Race Class: SSC5

by Tim Sullivan

How many classes of cars are in SCCA… more than one would think! Now there is one more! The new SSC5 (Spec Sealed Corvette 5th Gen)

So what does it take to get into this class. Simple.. a stock (somewhat) 5th Generation Corvette (1997-2004, ZO6’s excluded) Pretty simple.. The C5 Corvettes, when they came out, were great handling cars. Chevrolet had a C5 racing team. The new LS Gen 3 engine was phenomenal, and pretty bulletproof. They are plentiful, and the price is right. The first two cars in this class were purchased for $7500 and $6700. The cars are out there!

But, you say, you can’t just race it stock. No.. we have a uniform set up for them, much like the Spec Miata’s. But the cost is reasonable. We have made some deals to get the main components (supplied by LG racing) at a discount. The first build came in at just about $20,000. Not much more than the good old Spec Miata.. but a bit more horsepower and fun.

The “snapshot” and some photos of the new car are in the January 2018 issue –>

Regional 13 & 14 and Enduro Ends the Season

It was beautiful fall weather for the season’s finale race at Thunderhill Raceway Park, warm and sunny all weekend.The midday’s were hot and everyone was in hydration mode. A whole season with no rain racing. By now the number of actual novices were hard to be found. The overall entries were good for the last race of the year and after the Runoffs. And there were 23 entries for the last RDC Martin Illgen Endurance Race.

Full story along with these are in this issue:

Who was Naughty and Who was Nice; SFR Solo Round 12; Year-end Fun Photos; Sacramento Enduro; How to Qualify for the 2018 Runoffs

Regional 13 & 14 and Enduro Ends the Season It was beautiful fall weather for the season’s finale race at Thunderhill Raceway Park, warm and sunny all weekend.The midday’s were hot and everyone was in hydration mode. A whole season with no rain racing. By now the number of actual novices were hard to be […]

SFR Solo Nationals Trophy Winners

Join us in congratulating our fellow competitors bringing home awards, jackets and other hardware from the 2017 Tire Rack Solo Nationals. Lots of talent present in the region, so the list is quite long!

San Francisco in the thirties and forties, had to be an exciting place to grow up. . .

Enter a 16-year-old boy. Tall, thin, thick combed back hair, big toothy smile. You have not a concern in the world other then your parents insisting that you get a job. Their insistence is based on their desire to instill a strong work ethic at an early age.

This is San Franciscan born Larry Albedi. A kid looking for a job when he stumbles into a shop owned by the Bignotti brothers. Larry was looking for a job and just like most things in life the most insignificant event can change the course of your life forever. I do not know what convinced the Bignotti Brothers to hire Larry, but his good looks and his deep baritone voice surely had an influence. Larry did not have a clue how this chance encounter would forever change his life.

In the very short term Larry was able to go home and tell his father that he had a job; in the long term this wandering 16 year old found a purpose in life that would forever change him.

Larry knew that driving and owning his own car was his ultimate goal. Larry also knew that his father’s ultimate goal was for his son to be an attorney. What Larry’s father did not know was his son was a pretty smart kid and was more then capable of finding his way through life by letting his passion be the driving force.

Read Larry Albedi’s complete story in the September issue of The Wheel –>

The Spec Racer Ford Festival – Double Regional 5 & 6

This was the first SFR race weekend of the season at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The weather was beautiful all four days – three days of racing and one test day, with no morning fog delays. The Spec Racer folks turned out with 46 entries, the largest group.

In Group Four, 23 formula cars took the Green Flag for its first race of the weekend, with ten being from out of region including two from Canada, one from Tennessee, and the top three finishers.

Pole sitter Timothy de Silva/No.61 VanDiemen of Cal Club won the race, won FC, and turned the fastest race lap of 91.851 mph/90.137. His Margin of Victory ahead of Canadian Mitch Egner/No.14 Van Diemen out of Northwest Region from was 5.772 seconds. Third in class was Tom Hope/No.18 VanDiemen from Cal Club.

The top 16 cars overall were in the FC class, with two more following Chuck Horn. Horn finished first in FF, and set a new track record of 1:34.666. Second and third in class were Brad Hayes/No.74 Piper, and Michael Bernstein/No.12 Swift, who skipped qualifying. Michael Edick/No.36 Le Grand and Jack Baringer/No19 Crossle finished second and third in CF.

Sacramento Chapter Solo was back at Mather Air Field for rounds 3 and 4 which at the current moment has to be one of the best autocross sites in Northern California. Big thanks to Sacramento Sheriffs Department for allowing use to use their site in order for us to host the Police Action League event.

D Street had the highest number of competitors with a total of ten. It is definitely an interesting mix of cars. I noticed it seems the old Subaru WRX has found a class since half of the field was WRXs. Andrew Wake’s best run was a 76.422 in a Lexus IS 350. Ryan Bender and his 2017 WRX finished with a 76.124. Josh Henwood in the “other Subaru” a BRZ finished with a 75.913.

Solo Tour Championship Round 4

Round 4 was part of the SCCA Championship Tour, which was held at Crows Landing from April 28 to 30, 2017.

Karlton Lew took the top spot in Super Street in a 2015 Porsche GT3. He was followed by Monty Pack in a ’14 Porsche GT3. Ambrose Fung of Calgary, Alberta, finished third, also in a ’14 GT3. Orieta Zelazo of Calgary, Alberta, ran uncontested in Super Street Ladies in a ’14 Porsche GT3.

The Four-Hour Enduro is Back on the Schedule for 2017

The 57th Four-hour Illgen Enduro at Thunderhill Park will be run Sunday, October 29 on the 3-mile East track. The event will cap off the Regional weekend ending the 2017 season. Not only is this event the last and most fun of the year, it is the best value of the year.

The entry fee – $550 for a team of two drivers – remains the same as 2015. Each additional driver is $100 (maximum four). Rules will be essentially the same as in past years. All sessions (practice, qualifying, race) will be on Sunday.

The Four-hour Illgen Enduro has been a fun, low pressure, year-end event for over a half century and we look forward to seeing you there this year. Registration will be through the usual SFR process on MotorsportsReg.com and will open June 1.

Read the full story in the May issue –>

Sacramento Solo Season Opener, Wheelworks – Hurry Before the Missiles Hit, Full Body Contact, Like is Like Racing

SFR autox gets off to a great start

The first round of the San Francisco Region’s Solo Series was held at Marina Airport on February 19, 2017. Despite the threat of rain, 134 competitors showed up for the course designed by Mack Tsang.

Ken Mollenauer took first place in AS in his ’07 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. He was closely followed by Mary Pozzi in her ’04 Corvette Z06. Dusty Perryman rounded out top three in his ’08 Saturn Sky Redline.

More results in the March issue —>

First Solo of the Season, Racing in the Rain, 2017 Drivers School, Gotbluemilk.com Official Photographer